What is Corneotherapy? It’s All About The Lipid Barrier

The key to healthy, beautiful skin lies in the lipid barrier. In the past, doctors and researchers believed that the Stratum Corneum, our outermost layer of the epidermis, was just a layer of dead cells waiting to be sloughed away. But in the 1960s, Professor A. Kligman and his partners discovered that the Stratum Corneum, and the lipid barrier that keeps it intact like mortar in a brick wall, played a much bigger role in the health of our skin. The Stratum Corneum can send a multitude of signals to the living epidermis below it, and influences the regenerative processes in the deeper layers of the skin. They realized that healthy lipid barrier and Stratum Corneum means healthy skin, and Professor Kligman coined the term “Corneotherapy” to describe this new philosophy regarding skin care. Corneotherapy is the method by which we restore the Stratum Corneum and the lipid barrier with individualized products, thereby reducing structural inflammation and regaining the skin’s natural homeostasis.

When the skin’s lipid barrier is impaired and open, the deeper layers of skin remain in a state of “fight or flight,” constantly defending themselves against external toxins, bacteria, and water loss. Skin conditions such as acne, rosacea, dry skin, and dermatitis can be caused by an impaired skin barrier. Common cosmetic ingredients like emulsifiers, perfume, and preservatives can erode and aggravate the lipid barrier, and exacerbate various skin conditions. Corneotherapeutical skincare products heal the lipid barrier and allow the Stratum Corneum to do its job, which then allows the lower layers of skin tissue to function properly and regenerate. Products considered Corneotherapeutical contain no emulsifier, perfumes, preservatives, dyes, mineral oils, silicones, or amines, because these ingredients erode the lipid barrier (emulsifiers), sensitize the skin (perfumes, preservatives, amines, and dyes) or have no physiological benefit (mineral oils and silicones.) Corneotherapy is also individualized skin care, empowering estheticians and doctors to tailor products to each client or patient’s needs.